Tag Archives: October 2001

FAQ's about the Globetrotters Club? What are your criteria for membership?

We don’t have any criteria, anyone can join all we ask is that, they pay the membership fee, which is to cover the costs of running the club, any suplus or profit we make is used to the benifit of all members.

Some travel clubs may require that members spend a minimum period travelling, we do not.

By joining the club you will receive a copy of our membership listing, detailing members preferances.

Please visit our FAQ page for more Q&A’s about the club or have a look around our website, where we have over 80 pages of information.

If you have any specific questions that you can’t find on the website then please feel free to ask a more specific question. E-mail: faq@globetrotters.co.uk


The Canadian Arctic by Robert, a former Chair of the Globetrotters Club

As I write this I am crossing the Mackenzie river on a ferry on the way to Inuvik, Northwest territories, several hundred miles north of the arctic circle and as far as the road goes north in Canada. It’s about 12:30 am and the light still shines bright here. Twilight is my favourite time of day and I have just enjoyed six hours of it as I drove further and further north. Shortly it will become lighter and lighter again as the seemingly eternal dawn takes over from the eternal dusk I love no place like I love the north-it really brings out my soul and makes it sing. I left Dawson city this morning. The distance from Dawson to Inuvik is longer than from Anchorage, Alaska to Dawson. I have enjoyed every minute of it–the mountains, the wild fall colours, the quiet, the sight of the occasional moose or fox or caribou, all of it. Most of all, I love the closeness of the people up here.

I stopped about 100 miles north of the arctic circle to help three Eskimos who had a flat. Their uncle had borrowed their jack and forgot to put it back. My lug wrench and jack didn’t fit so we flagged down two cars-a New Zealander furnished the lug wrench and a British Colombian furnished the jack. We used the occasion to have a kind of party and I distributed beer from my ice chest. The Eskimos told us that right here in this gorgeous place where they broke down is where the hundreds of thousands caribou would migrate in just a few days time. I hope that I will be able to see it – it was a lovely experience and was probably my favourite experience in fixing a tire. In many other parts of the world people wouldn’t stop at all; they would be full of fear and suspicion about being robbed or killed or maybe just numb from the demands on their soul where they live. Here it is life or death, and people are used to helping each other and being available for each other. I remember when I first arrived in the north of pulling over to the side of the road in the winter to take a leak and having several cars stop and ask me if I needed help. It feels so very very good to be here! Even though I left Alaska 13 years ago, I still carry my Alaska driver’s license, and have not doubt that it will always be my real home.

To get in touch with Robert, contact the Beetle: Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk , but in the meantime, if you have a tale to tell, share your travel experience with the Beetle!

Want to join the London Committee? Already a member of the Globetrotters Club? We don’t say no to people who have some time to commit and can offer some help! Please contact Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk


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Mutual Aid New Year's Eve Buenos Aires!

Sue (Deputy Chair, London) would like some advice/tips/pointers on where to go and what to do in Buenos Aires at the New Year. Please contact the Beetle with any advice: Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk

Need help? Want a travelling buddy or advice about a place or country – want to share something with us – why not visit our Mutual Aid section of the Website:Mutual Aid


London.

Charlie Loram, the intrepid trekker/philosopher first visited India in 1992 and visits the Himalayas almost every year. Who else is so well qualified to talk about trekking in Ladakh and to talk about life and the people there. Charlie showed us some superb slides of the area, interspersed with maps of his routes and some of his own philosophy about eco-tourism and the quality of life. You can order a copy of Charlie’s book, Trekking in Ladakh (Trailblazer) online from www.trailblazer-guides.com.Fantastic, Charlie, and we look forward to seeing you again!

Just when you thought things could not continue on such a high, Paul Grogan took over the gauntlet in the second half and entertained us with some of the highs and lows of his adventures kayaking across Siberia with his babe magnet friend. Paul amazed us using slide and video footage (well done to Webmaster Paul!) starting with his moments of getting stuck in mud on the way to the source of the river Amur, flat calm days, sinister watch towers, political bureaucracy, gorgeous girls (!) and getting sozzled on a Chinese boat and waking up finding a very nasty plastic watch strapped to his wrist in exchange for his nice one! Brill!

Next, in London on 3rd November, Tim Burford will look at the varying styles of architecture in his talk on the Castles and Churches of Romania. Tim is a regular at the various London travel shows (along with the Beetle) and has impeccable guide book writing credentials and is author of both Bradt’s Hiking Guide to Romania and the Rough Guide to Romania.

Sebastian Hope will be talking about the Sea Gypsies of South East Asia, finding and travelling with the maritime nomads travelling the coasts of Borneo, Burma, Thailand, Sumatra, Sulawesi and Sulu Archipelago before returning to Sabah to search for Sarani a sea-gypsy chief and his friend. Another author, he has written Outcasts of the Islands about the sea gypsies of SE Asia published b by HarperCollins.

London meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden at 2.30pm the first Saturday of each month. For more information, you can contact the Globetrotter Info.line on +44 (0) 20 8674 6229, or visit the website: www.globetrotters.co.uk


Have you got a tale to tell??

If you have a travellers tale that your aching to tell. Then why not visit the “Travel Sized Bites” section of the Website and share it with the world. Travel Sized Bites


Ontario:

As soon as we get information on the annual barbecue we will let you know what happened! For information on Ontario meetings, please contact: Svatka Hermanek: shermanek@schulich.yorku.ca or Bruce Weber: tel. 416-203-0911 or Paul Webb: tel. 416-694-8259.

Meetings are held on the third Friday of January, March, May, September and November. Usually at the Woodsworth Co-op, Penthouse, 133, Wilton Street in downtown Toronto at 8.00 p.m.


Tibet from Tom

Tom from North Carolina wrote in to tell us about his time in Tibet: we (a small group of 8) had the usual difficulty with our visa delaying our entry to Tibet from Katmandu by a day even though this was planned and paid for in advance. We had to pay a second time and our original visa fee was eventually returned. Chinese officialdom also confiscated my Swiss army knife before I was allowed to board the airplane to Lahasa.

We toured the country in a small bus with Tibetan driver and Chinese guide both very pleasant. In addition to Lhasa, the capital, we also visited Shigatse and Gyantse, the next two largest cities, really small towns. This meant long rides (10 hours one day) travelling on dirt roads with no guard-rails but great scenery – neat farms, spectacular lakes, snow-capped mountains with steep drops and yaks.

We ate delicious food outside at a “one table” roadside place at very low prices. All the Tibetan people were very gracious and pleasant. At one lunch stop (two tables) while our food was being prepared we observed the ladies of the town in a Tug-of-war contest being cheered on by their men. The four ladies in our group were invited to participate.

Other than the scenery, the highlight of the visit was the Potala Palace in Lahasa where we spent an entire day climbing all types of steps and ladders to the thirteen levels of that seat of the Dalai Lamas. That is why Tom now has a bionic left knee.


Travel Quiz – Trekking in Ladakh

The winner of last month’s East & Southern Africa Quiz was Thomas Simoneit who lives in Muenchen
Germany. Well done – your book is in the post (subject to delays we are currently experiencing.)

We have Charlie Loram’s Trailblazer Guide Book on Trekking in Laddakh, which he has kindly donated as a prize for the winner of this month’s quiz. And what is more, Charlie has set this month’s quiz:

1. What is the largest river flowing through Ladakh?

2. What is the capital of Ladakh?

3. What is gur-gur cha?

4. In which mountain range would you find Saser Kangri (7670m), Ladakh’s highest peak?

5. In which direction should you walk round a chorten?

Your e-mail address:


Texas:

True to her word, Christina in Texas held a slide show on a weird and wacky take on Americana over the ages at the New Braunfels Public Library. Thanks to Jon and Beth for sharing their great slides and stories. A magnificent 12 people attended and to start the theme, Christina organized a door prize of a “classic” US Travel Atlas. Trish has loved Globetrotters for 9 years, and won, so congratulations to Trish! The show was thoroughly enjoyed by all – and all that was missing was the popcorn!


Not to be Seen Dead In?

The CNN website cites Robert Young Pelton’s book The World’s Most Dangerous Places and say that the top 10 most dangerous countries are: Chechnya, Sierra Leone, Colombia, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Southern Philippines, Algeria, Angola and South Africa.


Testimonial

Susan and Christina met at the first Globetrotters TX Branch meeting in July 2001. They have become good friends and will be travelling together to the Grand Canyon in November. Christina visits a National Park every year and Susan is ready to start the same tradition. They are doing budget travel together – exploring their options and having a trip to talk about. They’ll report on their trip at the December meeting.

The next Globetrotter meeting will be held at the New Braunfels Public Library, 700 E. Common Street in New Braunfels, Texas. From 3 – 5 p.m. on Saturday, November 10th, 2001.

Christina’s advice is to come early so you won’t be late! The Beetle’s is – come early and eat all the cookies! Handouts and refreshments will be available. Anybody want to help Christina or enquire about meetings, please contact her on: texas@globetrotters.co.uk


Italian Food… Rome

Rob from New York (yes, he of hiking in Grand Canyon) recommends the L’Hosteria da Isidoro near the Coliseum in Rome. He says that you sit down and ask for the tastings and basically they just keep bringing trays of pasta to your table until you say uncle. The pasta and risottos are excellent and have a great variety. If your table can eat 15 of these trays, then you get your meal free. The most he has been able to eat is 9.

Want to tell us about your favourite coffee corner or watering hole? Then contact the Beetle: Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk


All You Need To Know About Bermuda

The Beetle has just come back from a diving expedition to Bermuda and can share all the do’s and don’ts. Bermuda is without doubt a beautiful green and lush island in the Atlantic, some 775 miles off New York. It is very pretty with some great caves, lovely secluded little sandy bays, nice walks (although walking anywhere other than the beach and the disused railway tracks is very much discouraged – there are very few pavements) and lots of history.

First off, tourists are not allowed to hire cars. To get around, you have two options. You can pay $36 for a 7 day bus pass (which includes the use of the ferry) or you can hire a scooter for about $175 a week. The buses are clean and the network is reasonably extensive, but don’t rely on them at night. Taxis are expensive – very expensive. Scooters, on the other hand are just plain dangerous. The roads in Bermuda are for the most part narrow, hilly and windy – and don’t forget, they drive on the left! Scooter accidents are frequent. The speed limit is 35 kph, but you cannot tell how fast you are going because all of the speedos are disconnected – for obvious reasons!

If you are planning to sit by the sea and sun and swim, it is advisable to stay somewhere on the north coast because the sea is calm enough to swim without any worry on this side of the island. The sea has large waves that sometimes preclude swimming on the south coast.

Bermuda is very expensive in terms of accommodation and eating out. Both are poor value for money. In fact, it is cheaper to both eat and stay in New York, comparing like for like. Take some basic essentials with you, like ground coffee for your coffee maker, cookies etc.

The diving, quite frankly, is very mediocre. This is a great pity as there are over 400 documented shipwrecks off the coast of Bermuda. The dive boats resemble cattle trucks with up to 20 divers on them and the wrecks are disappointing. It is also not possible to dive to depths greater than 10 metres because the bottom of the ocean around the reef of Bermuda is seldom deeper than 10 metres.

It is not a destination the Beetle would whole heartedly recommend to anyone when there are so many other places in the world with similar activities on offer at a fraction of the price with considerably less hassle. A final warning, if you plan on staying at a certain guesthouse in Salt Kettle – do not turnover your valuables for safekeeping. Somehow, somewhere on the way, the Beetle’s wallet was $20 lighter.

If anyone would like to comment on an over rated travel destination or share a disappointing experience – e-mail the Beetle on: Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk


Travelling up the Northern Californian Coast

Peggy from San Francisco wrote in to tell us about travelling in Northern California: it’s a terrific time and the crowds have vanished and the summer fog replaced by mild weather. A trip up the Northern California coast is a journey into forests of giant redwood trees and along a beautiful wild coast. Take a soothing walk through the Roosevelt Forest. This forest of 800+ year old giant redwoods is the largest remaining old-growth redwood forest and a truly magical place. A little further north you can hunt for agates, jasper and jadeite on Agate Beach in Patrick’s Point State Park. In Redwood National Park you may have eagles, osprey, hawks or ravens soaring just over your head and see Roosevelt elk from less than 15 feet away. A Native American museum tucked among the trees is just one of the hidden treasures of this area. The North Coast of California has many inns and, for the adventurous, there’s lots of public parks among the trees and along the coast for camping. This wild and lovely side of California is only a 4 to 6 hour drive north of San Francisco.

Peggy has kindly offered to give advice to anyone interested in exploring the North California Coast, San Francisco Bay Area, and the Sierra Nevada Mountains. If you would like to take up Peggy’s offer, please contact her at: peggy.werner@gte.net


Escape from Pokara by David from Australia

Attempt no 1: booked seat on tourist bus departing Pokara for the border at 6.30 am last Sat 24 Mar. Woke at 3 am with violent diarrhoea and vomiting so no way could I even leave the hotel, so attempt no 1 aborted.

Attempt no 2: felt better on Sunday so booked seat on tourist bus leaving 6.30 am Monday as last time. No bus at 6.30 as only 60% full, but we were not told this until the 7.30 bus arrived which was only 60% full. Result 120% people for 100% seats, but I had a seat and I wasn’t moving for anybody.

Ensuing argument caused an hours delay, so effectively I was 2 hours late. The bus left at 8.30 with everybody frazzled. One hour out of Pokara, the driver attempted to overtake another vehicle on a narrow road, the offside wheels dug into the soft verge and the driver lost control.

The bus rolled sideways down a 30 metre embankment, turning over three times, and ended up sideways in a river. My side was in the water, and I was up to my neck in water. My first instinct was to get out as I didn’t know how deep the river was, and as I was opposite the door this was fairly easy. Then others and myself not injured helped the rest get out and up the embankment. Incredibly only four were injured, and only one could have been other than broken limbs (since found out it was internal injury to the liver with internal bleeding). The local villagers were great in helping us get people to the top of the bank and rescuing our waterlogged luggage. I was not injured except for bruises and scratches all over. But all my belongings were under water for some time, so all books (including LP guides), papers, photos, etc. were a mess, and everything was totally wet. I lost my distance glasses and a pair of reading glasses, and of course my camera, plus a few other comparatively minor items. Looking back, we were incredibly lucky, as there were banana trees growing on the bank that broke the fall of the bus, and the bank was only 30 metres high. The road winds through the mountains, with some vertical drops of 100’s of metres. After the police had arrived and the ambulances had departed, I got a local bus back to the hotel in Pokara, to get all my clothes laundered and clean up myself.

Attempt no 3. After enquiring about flying and finding out the cost and little saving in time, I booked on a local express (i.e. limited stops) bus departing 9.30 am on Tuesday. The travel agent put me in a taxi and told the driver where to go, but somehow I was put down in the wrong place to catch the bus, which left without me!

Attempt no 4. Back to the travel agent, who personally conducted me to and put me on the next bus at 11 am, and so I left Pokara eventually. The journey to the border was good and getting through Nepali and Indian Immigration was easy and quick. The trip on the Indian bus from the border to Ghoraphur railway station was like all trips on Indian buses – a rattling boneshaker, radio full blast with Indian music, the man next to me raving on about how India had beaten Australia in the cricket etc. So to Ghorakphur, where I managed to get a second class sleeper to Delhi on the train leaving at midnight. But the train was 2 hours late, so I sat on my backpack on the platform with two other travellers until the train arrived at 2 am. Train eventually arrived in Delhi 5 hours late at 7 pm Wednesday night. All a bit of a test of stamina, but then that’s Asia.

Next month: Tibet and how Harry Potter caused a stir at the Indian/Nepal border by Kevin Brackley! Also, part 2 of David’s adventure to be continued.

If you would like to get in touch with David, who is currently studying Italian in Perugia and has several other stories we will be including in future editions of the E-Newsletter, please contact Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk


Reader's Information/Fave Website

From Ben and Elfriede from Texas would like to share with us their experiences with the 5W Group that is HQ’d in England. They have just got back from a 2-month vacation in Europe. “We stayed primarily with members of “Women Welcome Women World Wide“. What a great way to travel and meet new people! If you’re doing genealogy research, they can usually direct you to the libraries, etc. All of our hosts provided excellent accommodations, food, and also advised us or showed us the best sights to see in their communities.

Usually husbands and/or children are welcome too. We highly recommend the 5-W Group. We stayed with couples that included a lawyer, a civil court judge, a criminal court judge, a home economics teacher, a deep sea diver, a professor of Russian literature whose husband is a professor of Russian history, a doctor of chemistry, a young couple who are both dentists, and also an owner of a travel agency. The 5-W Group sends a booklet listing the name, e-mail address, home address, phone#, age, profession, type of accommodations, religion, and interests (some of which include genealogy) of over 3,000 women world wide.”

Click here for information.

The Beetle say thanks a lot, Elfriede Ben – sounds like you had a great time! Has anyone got any other info and good experiences they would like to share? If so, contact the Beetle on: Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk


All you Wanted to Know About Courier Flights

The idea behind courier flights is that they are cheap economy (coach) class flight tickets because the person flying has to accompany a parcel, letter or some other item to hand over at the particular destination. Why do courier flights exist? Many companies will send a courier because it is cheaper than shipping freight by air cargo and also quicker as there are fewer customs delays. What is sent as freight? Often the items that are accompanied are time sensitive items such as weekly magazines or newspapers. Courier companies have overnight shipments to cities such as London, Rome, Hong Kong, Sydney, Tokyo, Singapore, Caracas, Stockholm, Jamaica, Madrid, Bangkok, Milan, Frankfurt, Rio De Janeiro, Paris, Melbourne, and several other locations in Europe, Asia, South America, and Australia.

How does it work? The courier company buys an economy (coach) class airfare. They then resell the ticket to you and, in exchange for your luggage space, give you a discount on the airfare. The courier company uses your luggage space for the material it is shipping. A representative from the courier company will meet you at the departing airport. They will give you the manifest and all the shipping instructions. On arrival at your destination, another courier representative will meet you. You have to give them the manifest and that’s it! You are not usually allowed to have contact with the luggage and may not actually see the packages they are shipping.

They can be used by budget travellers as a cheap way of getting from A to B. You are treated as a normal passenger on the plane and there is no special designation that marks you out. You must be over 18 at the time of travel to take advantage of a courier flight. There are often restrictions on the amount of luggage you may take with you on your journey, as the courier company usually uses your allocated luggage space to pack their goods in, so it is best to ask. It is usually not possible to arrange a courier flight with a friend, as courier flights tend to be one off events on a given plane.

You can book several months in advance or, if you are flexible in your destination, you can leave it quite late when deals will be cheaper. Your length of stay is determined by the day of departure however, most tickets are for at least 7 days. Others allow 10 days, 14 days, 21 days, and up to 6 months – you must ask.

The pros? Well, you can get make substantial savings on the cost of air tickets and you can go to a wide range of destinations. The cons: you must usually travel alone, you are often restricted in the amount of luggage you can take and can also be restricted in the amount of time you can spend in your arrival destination. There are a number of websites advocating courier flights. The majority sells courier flight information or listings for anything between $5 and $10. Useful websites include:

If anyone has experience – good or bad using courier flights, then please write in and tell the Beetle: Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk


Globetrotter Travel Award

Under 24? A member of Globetrotters Club? Interested in a £1,000 travel award?

Know someone who is? We have £1,000 to award each year for five years for the best submitted independent travel plan. Interested?

Then see our legacy page on our Website, where you can apply with your plans for a totally independent travel trip and we’ll take a look at it. Get those plans in!!


You want to visit?.. New Zealand

New Zealand is such a fantastic (nuclear free) country, with some of the friendliest people on this earth, wonderful outdoor life, good wine, glaciers, fjords, beaches, lakes, caves, geysers, mountains, you can ski, trek, hike, white water rafting, bungee jumping, diving, surfing and ?;?;?;?;.Get the idea! The first to thing to understand about New Zealand is that there are two islands connected by ferry and air and Auckland, Wellington (the capital) and Christchurch are the three largest cities. If New Zealand takes Beetles, this is where a Beetle would retire to!

The following itinerary is a very general route and aimed at “taking in” the best of both islands in a relatively short time from Auckland to Christchurch. It is incredibly easy to travel around New Zealand. The Beetle used the bus, which are plentiful and comfortable and there’s also a rail network. You can buy discounted books of tickets and hop on-hop off, or you can do it in an organized way on something like the Kiwi Experience if you are under 25, can get by on 3 hours of sleep a night and enjoy partying or you can hire a car. It would be a total waste of time to pay for a package tour to visit New Zealand, and anyone thinking of doing this must report immediately to the Beetle!

Arrive in Auckland – there is lots of accommodation ranging from the ubiquitous 5 stars, to boutique hotels to hostels. Do any shopping you may need, there are several excellent outdoor shops selling waterproofs, sleeping bags, stoves, sleeping bags etc. If you have plenty of time, head north up to Kohukohu and stay at the Tree House Lodge – a truly wonderful place, go walking, fishing, relax and chill out. From here you can continue north still to Kaitaia where you can take trips to 90 mile beach, do the 9 km Kaitaia Walkway, then head east to Russell which has to be one of the world’s prettiest spots by the sea. Divers can dive the Rainbow Warrior from Pahaia or you can swim with the dolphins.

If you have time, detour to Waitomo Caves (amazing!) en route to Rotorua via Hamilton. They are slightly south and west of Rotorua and then on to Rotorua where you must visit the geysers and boiling mud pools and inhale the malodorous school lab smells of hydrogen sulphide. Lake Taupo is a short bus ride away – there’s lots to do and see here, the lake itself, Huka Falls where you can take a speed boat and experience death defying handbrake type turns under the Falls, another several other infrequently visited geothermal park called Craters of the Moon and Orakei Korako. Don’t forget a night time Maori concert – amazing!

Then head south for Wellington (not called the windy City for nothing!), enjoy the cafes, see the sights: take the cable car, visit the botanical gardens and the zoo, go mountain biking, check out the talent rollerblading on the waterfront, the museums and when you are through, take the ferry to Picton on the south island. ON both sides, there is a free bus service to the bus and railway stations as they are a way out of town. From here you really should explore the Abel Tasman National Park. You can walk the 58 km long Abel Tasman Track, or do part of it, or you can take organized sea kayaking tours of the Marlborough Sounds.

Bring your rain coat – it always seems to rain on the south island – and head south and west and stop at Punakaiki and rest, walk through the beautiful forests or admire the rock foundations on the beaches, then head down the west coast to the two glaciers, Franz Josef and Fox. You can take helicopter rides and land on the top, or you can climb up part of them or you can stand and admire them at their base. Continue down to Milford and take a boat trip on the Sound and see the beautiful glaciated valleys and if you are a hiker, do the four day Milford Track. If you are into all things that make the adrenalin pump, head straight up to Queenstown and enlist in bungee jumping or whatever is your thing. Otherwise, head south to the small lake town of Te Anau, known for its beauty and calm. Do visit the caves with a glow worm grotto – mystical! It’s time to head back, so either head form Queenstown and stay at Wanaka, just north of Queenstown, a gorgeous small town with vineyards by the lake and head back to Christchurch. Or alternatively, from Te Anau, head east to Dunedin and then back to Christchurch.

Next month: the best of Argentina and surrounds.

Please contact Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk for your suggested country itinerary